beetlejuice

So anyone been along to any of the showcases? How're things sounding?

I'm hoping to get along to a few once my exams are past.

Was browsing round Facebook, trying to avoid studying, and discovered the line-up for this has got a bit bigger, with Indian Red Lopez confirmed as the first headliner...

T Fest 2011 Line-up so far!!!!

IndianRedLopez

The OK Social Club

Tempercalm

Talking Sideways

Daydream Frenzy

Xavia

Turning13

MakethisRelate

HelloVideo

A Day Overdue

FIRES ATTRACT

Upstart Heroes

it will be epic so get down and party!!! ticket info coming soon

Mon 2 May

Elevation' date=' Semperfi, Cook Doo, Tensium Rising, The Ruckus

[b']Mon 9 May

Ghosts of Progress, Nicky Powel Band, Emerald Sunday, Willie G Trio, Good Police

Mon 16 May

The Myke Black Band, Shy James, Crooked Little Vein, Silver By Skyline, Rich Gordon Band

Sun 22 May

Which Way Now?. The Kurbs, Zulu People, Three Knots, Bryan Anthony Alvarez Band

Sun 29 May

Turning 13, Talking Sideways, Suburban Saints, Aperture, Michelle Barclay

Sun 5 June

Lost City Soul, Arrogance, Gutter Godz, Joy Riot

Sun 12 June

Nova Kings, Malfunction, Foxhunting

Mon 13 June

Ded Rabbit, Pre Teens

A quick look at Facebook also throws up...

Fri 13 May

Wildcrow, Red Drone, The Shakedown Project, Xtreme Machine

Mon 30 May

Stanley

And of course that one filmed by STV and any others before the 2nd of May...

I've mostly found out about them through Facebook invites by AGP and the bands themselves.

Also found a partial list on FnS whilst Googling, out of the 30-odd bands listed on there, I recognised less than half: Northern Lights Festival 2011- Updates | Flares n Seagulls

Shame there isn't a complete 'official' list on the NL website actually...

EDITED FOR HEINOUS SPELLING MISTAKES.

Found a couple of free albums recently that're worth a listen:

The Cast of Cheers - reminds me a bit of Foals, but with a chunkier bassline

Buffalo Gun - AC/DC-inspired Southern rock

I've been looking at the line-ups to these showcase shows with quite a lot of interest. I like to think I have a fairly good grasp of the active bands in Aberdeen, but there are some folks in there I have simply never heard of. Ever. And I have yet to find someone else who has heard of them. Are these people who have just got together for this, thinking that playing a festival might be good banter? Or are they new bands, who have decided Northern Lights should be their big debut?

That said, there are some great bands taking part in these showcases, and out of all that have applied I can see what should be a pretty decent line-up taking shape.

Absolutely fantastic album. If you do not yet own this, go and buy it. NOW.

Voting is now open on scottish music awards, set up to recognise the music scene in Scotland

I'm interested to hear more of Good Police, as I thought that there was something missing whilst watching them. Turns out that they had some technical difficulties and played as a two piece, minus samples and stuff.

Agreed - I'd like to hear them at the top of their game as they had some interesting ideas.

First time I'd ever seen The Wetflex and thought they were wonderfully, amazingly bonkers - brilliant fun, talented musicians and they put on a show. Can't wait to catch them live again.

And of course You Slut! and Maybeshewill were bloody fantastic, as was to be expected.

Brilliant gig Ross, keep 'em coming! Yay post-rock!

Still looking for reviews? Drop me an email at eoin@herculesmoments.co.uk and I'll see what I can do regarding Hercules Moments and the Evening Express. (Although you did say you were looking for reputable publications... )

You can get a Twilight Sad Acoustic EP here:

The Twilight Sad Acoustic

Hell yes!

When is the single out? Gimme a shout and I'll get it in the paper

Absolutely fantastic gig. Min Diesel were great, despite not being able to get into their storage space and therefore having to borrow Carson Wells' gear. Carson Wells themselves were fantastic too, and I'm looking forward to this new EP they have coming out. And I'd never seen Pensioner before, but they blew me away - man, do they know how to groove!

The one thing that disheartened me slightly was the fact that there were only about 25 folk in the crowd. Three great bands, who deserved a bigger audience to play to.

All of you who didn't go missed out. Big time.

Come on guys, this is going to be stupidly good. Anyone heading down?

Most definitely.

I sound like a really grumpy old man but fuck it, I just wanted to listen to their awesome songs and ogle Kelly a bit. Is that so much to ask?

That's why I was there...

the children in the crowd making it really awkward at the start of JoFos set

Yeah, whoever threw food in Alexei's face is pretty much an arsehole.

JoFo were great. Really great.

This is in a few hours. Yay.

I had never heard Pensioner before. This song has convinced me they are great.

Will definitely be heading along to the gig now, plus Carson Wells and Min Diesel make it an ace night!

I am keen to see how the actual layout of the event will look.

Indeed. An open-air main stage with 2 smaller tented ones?

All this talk about neds and minkers is unbelievable. Wise up! It's embarrassing!

Well said.

My decision on whether or not to go to a festival is based upon my liking of the music, not the other folk who are there. If that was the case, I never would have gone to Leeds last year in case I burned alive. (Seriously, it came close to happening.)

I could quite easily take one of those CDs off your hands

Despite not being vegan, I'd happily chow down on some vegan food...

As other folks have mentioned, there are a few interesting cafes in and around the centre of town. At the moment, Kilau, Musa and Books & Beans spring to mind. I love visiting all three, for various different reasons (crepes/art/music; music/more of a sit-down meal; tasty soup/second-hand books).

That said, I would whole-heartedly support a new venture on Union Street. good music + good food is a winner in my books. To stand out, and survive against the already-existent cafes, you'll need an angle that makes you different from all the others.

So... what's your angle?

P.S. best of luck

No camping is correct. If I were to go I'd spent a lot longer at the local stage.

Yeah, they're opening up Hillhead Halls for a little extra moolah apparently.

I really hope they just let folk send in demos for the chance to play or whatever...

Have a look at the other thread about this, in the Networking section. There is a contact email address for local bands.